Sustaining the progress that the economy has achieved since the financial crisis will require continued monitoring of newly emerging threats to financial and economic stability, and decisive responses, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Janet L. Yellen said in her letter of resignation from the board Monday to President Donald Trump.
Yellen, in her letter to Trump, said her resignation would be effective upon the swearing in of her successor as chair of the board. Jerome Powell, a current member of the board, has been nominated as the next chairman; a hearing in the Senate Banking Committee is set for Nov. 28 on Powell’s nomination.
Yellen’s term as chairman runs to Feb. 3, 2018. Her current term on the board expires at the end of January, 2024. She is 71.
Yellen’s exit will leave four seats open on the central bank’s board; three are open now.
The Fed chairman wrote in her letter to Trump that the economy has produced 17 million jobs, on net, over the past eight years and, “by most metrics, is close to achieving the Federal Reserve’s statutory objectives of maximum employment and price stability.”
‘Sustaining progress will require continued monitoring of, and decisive responses to, newly emerging threats to financial and economic stability.’
She added: “Of course, sustaining this progress will require continued monitoring of, and decisive responses to, newly emerging threats to financial and economic stability.”
Yellen wrote that in preparing to leave the Board, she is gratified that the financial system is much stronger than a decade ago, better able to withstand future bouts of instability and continue supporting the economic aspirations of American families and businesses. “The Federal Reserve has been and remains a strong institution, focused on carrying out its vital public mission with integrity, in a professional, non-partisan manner. I am confident that my successor as Chair, Jerome H. Powell, is deeply committed to that mission and I will do my utmost to ensure a smooth transition,” she stated.
Yellen also said she was “enormously proud” to have worked alongside many dedicated persons at the Fed, singling out her predecessor as Chair, Ben S. Bernanke. She wrote that Bernanke’s “leadership during the financial crisis and its aftermath was critical to restoring the soundness of our financial system and prosperity of our economy.”